Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1887-05-24
PIsOAToRIAL.
One Million Shed Fry Emptisd rnto tho
Ksnnebec. AA'' ING
osf NO. , OF the United state. rY..
mission, ~

49, DAasCQ 0t8te8 Effnh
mission.
oAi NO. belonging to the United State,
FISH Commission in charge of Mr.. 7 Fr.,t
Ems OF the Smithsonian Institution W..h.
'ne'on' arrived in the city Monday morning
accompanying the same was Fish Comm;.,
sioner Stilwell upon whose invitation vo
visited the car, which is owned bv tho u G
government. 1t is the best eouipned or :,
Inc service, of the ordinary pullman ca,
length and is divided into three principal
compartments. Entered from the rear fra,
comes the office which is comfortably f,ted
up and presents a business.like annea,.,o..
next Is the main saloon fitted up for dining
ana sleeping purposes and which also con.
tains on the left hand side the hatchino anna.
ratus; and last comes the kitchen and engine
room. Inc car contains three tanks for
holding water, one forward, the second AT.
Doth overhead, and the third beneath the
main saloon. These tanks afford sufficien,
supply for fifteen hours use There i. al.o a
large ice chest in tn rear of the car fo- RI.
purpose of regulating the temp,rature If ths
water which should be at 70 degrees.
In addition to Superintendent Ellis who
mas been engaged in the fish hatchiny and
pfanting business since 1877, the working
iorce consists OF five men, all Of whom make
theie nome on the car, sleeping aud eating
tpere. Inc car Is almost constantly on the
ROAD and departed from Washington last
saturday night. One of the trips to be made
at an early date will he t. Oregon. Shad are
now being planted and the next frv 10 he
handled will be carp
In the main saloon t e process of Matching
was to be seen. The Mcdonald lars are
used arranged in pairs The one containing
the eggs first attracted our notice. The egQs
presented an amber color and were nearl,
globuar, firmly held together in the spawn.
hfough the top of the jar enters the supply
pipe by which a continuous stream of water
Is forced into the jar by the engine. This
pipe extends nearly TO the bottom of the lar
through the spawn and the water thus enter
ing causes constant motion to the eggs,
winch Is necessary for the Matching. The
overflow pipe also passes through the top of
the jar and rs fast as the fish are Matched thus
pass with the current through this pipe into
the second jar where they are retained and
dipped out INTO the cans at stated intervals.
This Mcdonald apparatus matches the eggs
as perfectly as at stationary Matching houses
ana ADDS largely to the capacity and worth of
the car. Under the old method of transport
ing the Try In express cars only about l00,-
OOO could be carried, but by this method !,
OOO,OOO are easily handled. Pure and NOV
ing water must be had in Matching, if the
best results are obtained. Thus the small
engine is employed to keep up circulation
and furthermore the water is oxy genated BY
an ingenious contrivance With forces the
gas into the liquid This is to supply the
deficit caused by the consumption of oxygen
by the young shad and eggs, for
even the latter require this all
pervading gas, said Mr.. Ellis. The water is
also filtered before entering the Matching APP
paratus. Fresh water is introduced every
six or eight hours either from the railway
tanks or some stream. Frequently supply
is obtained from the tank Of the locomotive
tender,as was done Yesterday forenoon. the car
being attached behind 1t and ahead of the
baggage car. "Should | be unable for
twenty hours to repeuish my supply of
water" said Mr. E'lis, my fish and eggs
would all die"
The car left Washington with about POO,
600 shad mnnows just hatched, and some
1000, 900 eggs. The former were in cans
which were carefully kept in the "refrgera-
tor beneath the floor OF the car and vester-
day morning were emptied into the Kenne-
bee. between and o'clock, about half an
hour being consumed in the operation The
car set on the siding just below the car shop,
and the cans, one by one, were carried down
the bank by the men and handed to an
operator, who stood knee deep in the river
water, he liberating the fish by pouring
out the contents of the cans. The fry will at
once wrygle their way down river to the sea.
The eggs were all taken from mother shad
captured n the Potomac river. Those
taken aboard on the departure from Wash
ington were to be hatched in transit, and it
was expected that the fry would be ready for
planting on reaching Bangor, the fish being
allotted to the Penvbscot by order of the Fish
Commissioner. They are about two-thirds
the size of salmon eggs. The Young shad are
peculiar in shape, about half an
inch in length with q large sack next TO
the head; this sack is the food sack. Their
bodies are almost transparent, with the sllght-
est color to distinguish them from the water.
Their movements are very quick, and their
| flexible bodies took every conceivable form
| that so small fish could be imagined to take.
They live upon the food contained in the egg
| for two or three days after Matching. when
they begin to forage for themselves. 1t re
| Quires the most careful straining OF the water
to separate the egg shells from the fish with
out losing the latter.
A large number of our citizens awaited
themselves of the privilege of entering the
car and examining its appliances ana the
mode of operating Mr.. Ellis very cour
| teously received visitors and explained the
wonders of shad Matching.